Shop Wine

wines

95-97. Barrel sample. A powerful wine that’s full of wood and ripe tropical-fruit flavors. It also has an intensely mineral structure that powers the wine right through to the concentrated finish.Wine Enthusiast | 96 WEA spectacular effort, especially for this challenging vintage, Olivier Bernard’s 2011 Domaine de Chevalier boasts a dense ruby/purple color as well as a big, sweet bouquet of subtle charcoal, graphite, black currants and black cherries. Rich and full-bodied with a multilayered mouthfeel and a long, complex, stunning finish, this is a profound example of a 2011 from a great terroir. Consume it over the next 20 years.Robert Parker | 94 RPThe colour takes a big step up in terms of intensity, nose is a little closed off right now, and there is some wonderful texture to the fruit as you find across so many Domaine de Chevalier vintages, with a great balance of finessed, well presented fruit and tannins that are just so softly extracted. Not the most exuberant fruit but very good quality, great caress across the palate and plenty of life ahead of it. Drinking Window 2020 - 2035.Decanter | 93 DECThis is solidly built, featuring a full-bodied feel from the loam and tar frame, balanced by the depth of the plum, blackberry and fig core. Reveals a smoldering edge through the finish, with an echo of cocoa. Best from 2016 through 2028.Wine Spectator | 92 WSThis is a rich wine for the vintage with mineral, raspberry and lemongrass character. Full body, chewy tannins and a long finish. Need three or four years to come together.James Suckling | 92 JS(Domaine de Chevalier) After two badly oxidized samples at the start of the UGC event for 2011 Graves wines, an SOS call was put out to the nearby estate, who quickly dispatched over one of the technical team with freshly pulled samples that were really quite good. I have made no secret of my disappointment at the new direction at Domaine de Chevalier, as this estate has one of the largest representations of older vintages in my own personal cellar, and I cannot admire the changes wrought by Monsieur Derenoncourt since his arrival here. But, that said, this 2011 is clearly one of the best wines in the appellation this year! The nose is deep and fairly modern in its aromatic mélange of dark berries, black cherries, tobacco smoke, coffee bean and a suave base of nutty and lead pencilly new oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and currently quite marked structurally by its new wood component, but with good mid-palate depth, lovely focus, a suave attack and probably enough stuffing to eventually carry its new wood with little difficulty. One could quibble about the complete lack of soil signature from an estate with one of the finest terroirs in all of Bordeaux, but at least the 2011 DDC is very well-balanced and quite well-made in its new, modern guise. (Drink between 2022-2040).John Gilman | 90 JG

This is excellent. Blueberry, black currant and stone aromas and flavors. Medium body, lovely density, fine tannins and a bright finish. A triumph for the vintage. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 93 JSExtremely easy to immediately enjoy the rich and ripe fruit character on the nose on this wine, it’s not got the complexity of some vintages but is delivering gorgeous depth of expression, charcoal, cassis, liquorice, heather, soft black pepper spicing, a great job in a tough year with a lovely touch of exuberance. One that will surprise people. (Drink between 2018-2028)Decanter | 92 DECOne of the successes from Pessac-Léognan, this refined, structured wine is singing already with its fruitiness. Ripe and forward, it is developing into a medium-bodied, perfumed wine that will be ready to drink relatively quickly. Drink from 2019.Wine Enthusiast | 92 WEThe 2013 Domaine de Chevalier has a refined bouquet, laid back and languorous with blackberry, briary notes, a touch of bay leaf developing in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with crisp, quite edgy tannin, nicely balanced and fresh with a simple but harmonious finish. It’s the kind of 2013 that you’ll just enjoy as a fine Claret, leaving you with a smile on your face. This constitutes a very commendable effort in such a challenging vintage, the bottom line being that it is one of the most pleasurable releases in 2013.Robert Parker Neal Martin | 90 RP-NMThis has a dark, almost brooding persona, with plum, black currant and black cherry fruit, inlaid with an ample warm road tar note. Shows lots of smoldering tobacco on the finish. Slightly rustic tannins pinch just a bit at the end, but otherwise this is a gutsy and solid effort. Best from 2017 through 2022. 6,250 cases made.Wine Spectator | 90 WS

The second wine of Domaine de Chevalier, the 2019 L’Esprit De Chevalier shows the fresher, more lively, complex style of this cool terroir and reveals a deep ruby/purple color, notes of tobacco, damp earth, violets, black cherries, and dark currants, medium-bodied richness and depth, and outstanding length on the finish. It has a lively spice of acidity as well as ample ripe fruit and is ideal for drinking any time over the coming 15 years or more.Jeb Dunnuck | 91-93 JDPlums and fresh flowers, such as roses on the nose with some stems and parsley. Full-bodied with round, polished tannins that are medium in stature but long and caressing, giving nice tension to the wine on the palate. 55% cabernet sauvignon, 40% merlot and 5% petit verdot. Try after 2025.James Suckling | 93 JSFrom the younger vines of the estate, this second wine at Domaine de Chevalier is wood aged for 14 months. It has spice and also bursts with black fruits and acidity. Set to develop well, the wine should be ready from 2025.Wine Enthusiast | 93 WEDark chocolate and mint on the nose, some sweet blackcurrant. I love the upfront juiciness here, it’s well textured with fine tannins that gently support the fruit letting it shine brightly on the palate. There’s a creaminess to this too which is so satisfying. Really a beautiful, gentle, delicate but nuanced wine. Good freshness and drinking appeal with fruit and energy. Easy enjoyment, well made. well structured. Good winemaking on show. Drinking Window 2022 - 2033.Decanter | 92 DECThe 2019 Esprit de Chevalier is a gorgeous second wine. Bright, plump and juicy, the Esprit will keep the domaine’s fans happy right out of the gate. A rush of sweet red cherry, red plum, mint, spice and licorice builds as this exuberant, radiant red shows off its fun-loving personality.Antonio Galloni | 89-91 AGPresents a mix of bramble, mulling spice and savory notes, with steeped plum and red currant fruit flavors and a tarry tug on the finish. Shows good energy throughout. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot. Drink now through 2031. 8,333 cases made.Wine Spectator | 91 WSAromas of smoky blackberries, cherries, loamy soil and smoke preface the 2019 L’Esprit de Chevalier, a medium to full-bodied, ample and charming wine that’s rich but elegant, with its fleshy core of fruit framed by velvety tannins and succulent acids.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 90 RP